Recife inaugurated two floodable parks - one in Ipsep in November 2024 and another in Campo do Barro in January 2025. A third park in Umuarama has already had its tender published. The parks are part of the 'sponge city' concept to deal with flooding.
Floodable parks are part of the 'sponge city' concept developed by Chinese architect Kongjian Yu as an alternative to conventional drainage solutions in tropical cities subject to torrential rainfall. Recife ranks 16th globally among cities most vulnerable to climate change according to the IPCC.
Recife occupies the 16th position worldwide in the IPCC ranking of cities most vulnerable to climate change
The first floodable park was delivered in November 2024 on the banks of the Tejipió river, between the Areias and Ipsep neighborhoods, with 3,900 m² and an investment of R$ 2.5 million
The Campo do Barro Floodable Park was inaugurated in January 2025 in the Barro neighborhood, with more than 23,000 m², an investment of R$ 3.4 million and capacity for 1,510 m³ of water
The third park, Umuarama Floodable Park, also in Barro, has already had its tender published with a planned investment of R$ 3.8 million
The parks function as retention basins, remain dry most of the year and accumulate water only during periods of intense rainfall
The concepts were developed by Chinese architect Kongjian Yu, creator of the 'sponge city' idea, who died in a plane crash in the Pantanal last year
Ipsep residents reported lack of information and community participation during the park construction process
Tamarineira Park flooded during April rains but was not designed to be floodable
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No gaps declared — all sources converge on the material facts.